Be Kind Anyway: You Don’t Know What Someone Is Carrying

I think about this every single day now.

“Be kind.”

Not because it sounds good on a coffee mug. Not because it’s some cute little slogan. But because I’ve lived the kind of life that will break a person — and I know I’m not the only one. We say “you never know what someone is going through” — but most of us have no idea how true that really is.

You don’t know what it’s taken for the mom in front of you to show up today. You don’t know what that tired cashier has survived just to smile at you. You don’t know the weight someone is carrying quietly — until life brings you to your knees and you start carrying it yourself.

I Know Because I’ve Been Her.

I’ve been the girl who lost everything. I’ve been the addict no one believed would survive. I’ve been the mom crying in her car because the house is loud and messy and the kids need things I can’t give. I’ve been the woman standing in line at the store counting change because every dollar went to keeping the lights on. I’ve been the employee giving everything to a job — until my body gave out before anyone noticed.

I’ve walked through addiction. Through abuse. Through trauma .Through job loss. Through chronic health problems nobody can diagnose but leave me hurting every single day.

I’ve survived being misunderstood, dismissed, talked about, judged — not just by strangers — but sometimes by people I loved.

And Now I’m Here — But Not Because Life Got Easier.

I’m here because I refused to stay broken.

I’m here because I have 5 ausome kids watching me — watching how I show up for life even when it’s hard. Watching how I treat people. Watching how I love people.

I want them to know that kindness isn’t weakness. It’s survival. It’s strength. It’s compassion in a world that often forgets how badly people are hurting behind closed doors.

You Don’t Know Someone’s Story.

You don’t know what it’s taken for the mom at the park to sit on that bench while fighting a chronic illness nobody sees. You don’t know how hard it was for the man walking down the road with a backpack to stay clean today. You don’t know why the single mom is late picking up her kid from school — maybe she’s working two jobs and hasn’t slept. You don’t know how many nights the person next to you has cried themselves to sleep.

You don’t know. But you can still be kind anyway.

Kindness Costs Nothing — But It Changes Everything.

We are all carrying something. Some of us are just better at hiding it.

But I will never regret being the person who smiled first. Who gave grace. Who softened my words. Who held space for someone else’s mess — because I know what it feels like to drown in my own.

Final Thoughts: This is What Chaos in Color Stands For

This is why I share my story. This is why I built Infinite Chaos Solutions. This is why I created Chaos in Color.

Not for perfection. Not for image. But for real people with real stories and real survival in their bones.

We’re all a little messy. We’re all a little tired. We’re all just trying to make it.

So if nobody told you today — I see you.

Your story matters. Your pain matters. And you deserve kindness — right where you are.

Be kind. Anyway. Always.